CA proposes tariff reduction for M-Pesa across networks

Popular mobile money transfer platform M-Pesa may soon become cheaper for non-Safaricom users if new proposals by a consultant hired by the Communications Authority of Kenya are effected.

Analysys Mason, a UK consultant appointed two years ago to assess competition in the telecoms sector, also recommends that Safaricom stops on-net discounts and individually tailored loyalty schemes so as to reduce the barriers to entry for smaller players.

COMPETITION

The consultant has however shelved a contentious proposal to split Safaricom and M-Pesa in order to reduce Safaricom’s competitive advantage in the mobile money transfer market.

We should proceed with caution on the cybercrimes bill

DAILY NATION By JOHN WALUBENGO

Friday February 16th 2018

The Computer and Cybercrimes Bill of 2017 is before Parliament and undergoing public consultations. Whereas it does contain contentious clauses, we must be careful not to throw out the baby with the bathwater.

This is because the Cybercrimes Bill is one of the four pending bills that are required to usher in a true digital economy for Kenya. The other three are the Data Protection Act, the Electronic Transactions Act and the Copyright Act.

As the country gets more and more digitised, new forms of threats and crimes emerge. These crimes present challenges to the authorities in terms of investigations, prosecution and judicial adjudication, since the old legal frameworks do not adequately apply.

A legal framework covering crimes against and using computer systems is therefore a welcome development and would go a long way in making Kenya a safer place.

An unpredictable governance framework will have a chilling effect on the ICT sector

DAILY NATION By JOHN WALUBENGO

Wednesday February, 07, 2018

Last week we had three little tsunamis sweeping the ICT sector. Three events, all centred on the communications regulator, are likely to have far-reaching ramifications going forward.

The first was that the embattled director-general of the Communication Authority of Kenya (CA) obtained a court order rescinding a decision to send him home on compulsory leave pending some human resources-related investigations.

It is not the first time that the CEO of the CA has been sent home unceremoniously, but it was the first time that a court has ordered his reinstatement – and that court order was ignored.

Artificial Intelligence will be the next revolution. Are we ready for it?

DAILY NATION By LUIS FRANCESCHI

Wednesday January 30, 2018

Last week, Melinda Gates and Strive Masiyiwa spoke in Nairobi about their latest initiative, the Pathways for Prosperity Commission on Technology and Inclusive Development.

These top billionaires aim to bring together “diverse voices and perspectives to map the potential impacts of technology on jobs in developing countries and come up with practical proposals.”

On Friday, January 26, Masiyiwa toured the Strathmore campus. As our conversation got more and more engaging, we came to the Policy Innovation Centre, a high-tech arbitration room sponsored by Microsoft, where exciting arbitrations, policy discussions and law drafting is taking place.